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Michael Clemens is co-director of migration, displacement, and humanitarian policy and a senior fellow at the Center for Global Development, where he studies the economic effects and causes of migration around the world. He has published on migration, development, economic history, and impact evaluation, in peer-reviewed academic journals including the American Economic Review, and his research has been awarded the Royal Economic Society Prize. He also serves as a Research Fellow at the IZA Institute of Labor Economics in Bonn, Germany, an Associate Editor of the Journal of Population Economics and World Development. He is the author of the book The Walls of Nations, forthcoming from Columbia University Press. Previously, Clemens has been an Affiliated Associate Professor of Public Policy at Georgetown University, a visiting scholar at New York University, and a consultant for the World Bank, Bain & Co., the Environmental Defense Fund, and the United Nations Development Program. He has lived and worked in Colombia, Brazil, and Turkey. He received his PhD from the Department of Economics at Harvard University, specializing in economic development, public finance, and economic history.

This article presents a new perspective on the impact of migration and remittances on time allocation in migrant-sending families. It is a common finding that labor market participation is lower in migrant households. We look at the channels behind this stylized fact, by investigating if migration affects three main reasons for inactivity: (i) leisure consumption (ii) home production and (iii) higher education. Based on household survey data from Moldova, our results challenge the assertion that those who stay behind consume more leisure. Instead, living in a migrant household implies higher probabilities of intra-household labor substitution and home production. For adolescents in migrant families, we also find a substantially higher likelihood of university enrolment. Altogether, the higher levels of inactivity among migrant families can be attributed to education and housework activities, with little evidence for disincentive effects.

Interested in a printed copy? We are happy to mail you free printed copies of the briefs. Send your name, address, and the number of sets you would like to publications@cgdev.org. If you would like to receive multiple copies of specific briefs, please indicate which one(s) you would like.
These Global Development Policy Briefs present the key facts and recommendations drawn from chapters of The White House and the World: A Global Development Agenda for the Next U.S. President. In a succinct form for busy people, they offer innovative solutions and practical ideas to improve the lives of poor people in developing countries. The briefs suggest modest changes in U.S. policies that could foster greater stability, security, and prosperity globally and at home.Center for Global Development experts offer fresh perspectives on trade policy, migration, foreign aid, climate change, and more.
CGD In The Media
The Voice of America features CGD's new book The White House and the World: A Global Development Agenda for the Next U.S. President in a 5-part series of interviews with CGD's experts. Read and Listen Here
White House and the World Policy Briefs:
Why Global Development Matters and What the Next U.S. President Should Do About It By Nancy Birdsall
Opportunities for Presidential Leadership on AIDS: From an “Emergency Plan” to a Sustainable Policy By Mead Over
Healthy Foreign Policy: Bringing Coherence to the Global Health Agenda By Ruth Levine
Global Warming: An Opportunity for Greatness By David Wheeler
Power and Roads for Africa: What the United States Can Do By Vijaya Ramachandran
Don’t Close the Golden Door: Making Immigration Policy Work for Development By Michael Clemens
U.S. Foreign Assistance for the 21st Century By Sheila Herrling and Steve Radelet
More Growth with More Income Equality in the Americas: Can Regional Cooperation Help? By Nancy Lee
Aid for Education: More Bang for the Buck By Kate Vyborny and Nancy Birdsall
Tripping Over Health: U.S. Policy on Patents and Drug Access in Developing Countries By Kimberly Elliott and Carsten Fink
U.S. Trade Policy and Global Development By Kimberly Elliott
Getting the Focus Right: U.S. Leadership in the Fight against Global Corruption By Dennis de Tray and Theodore Moran
Interested in a printed copy? We are happy to mail you free printed copies of the briefs. Send your name, address, and the number of sets you would like to publications@cgdev.org. If you would like to receive multiple copies of specific briefs, please indicate which one(s) you would like.

The White House and the World: A Global Development Agenda for the Next U.S. President shows how modest changes in U.S. policies could greatly improve the lives of poor people in developing countries, thus fostering greater stability, security, and prosperity globally and at home. Center for Global Development experts offer fresh perspectives and practical advice on trade policy, migration, foreign aid, climate change and more. In an introductory essay, CGD President Nancy Birdsall explains why and how the next U.S. president must lead in the creation of a better, safer world.

International movements of people can spark and sustain the development process in poor countries, helping people climb out of poverty. Creating opportunities for poor people to improve their lives promotes our values, enhances our security,and restores our faltering image abroad. The next president of the United States has an opportunity to advance a migration
agenda that is one of several pillars of our leadership position on global development. CGD research fellow Michael Clemens shows how.

A hearty congratulations to Esther Duflo, winner of this year’s John Bates Clark Medal! Since 1947 the American Economic Association has awarded the medal to “that American economist under the age of forty who is judged to have made the most significant contribution to economic thought and knowledge.” In our profession, the Clark Medal ranks second only to the Nobel Prize, and about 40 percent of medal winners have gone on to win a Nobel. Esther, a 37-year-old native of France, richly deserves this platinum honor.